Aroma and Shadow: Marx vs. Nietzsche on Religion.

Marx and Nietzsche are often mentioned together in relation to a caustic denunciation of religion. In this essay, the author takes such juxtaposition to task. Nietzschean atheism should be understood as an absolute alternative to Marxism, devised specifically to destroy it and take its place. The religious "shadow" that Nietzsche sought to chase away was, at bottom, the Marxist variant of atheism. Conversely, the Nietzschean brand of atheism can best be seen as just one of many odors of a religious "aroma" so offensive to Marx and Engels.